MIT Technology Review

Scientists have solved fundamental problems that were holding back cures for rare hereditary disorders. Next we’ll see if the same approach can take on cancer, heart disease, and other common illnesses.

Advances at Google, Intel, and several research groups indicate that computers with previously unimaginable power are finally within reach.

By converting heat to focused beams of light, a new solar device could create cheap and continuous power.

Tractor-trailers without a human at the wheel will soon barrel onto highways near you. What will this mean for the nation’s 1.7 million truck drivers?

Inexpensive cameras that make spherical images are opening a new era in photography and changing the way people share stories.

Biology’s next mega-project will find out what we’re really made of.

Scientists are making remarkable progress at using brain implants to restore the freedom of movement that spinal cord injuries take away.

Face-detecting systems in China now authorize payments, provide access to facilities, and track down criminals. Will other countries follow?

The relentless push to add connectivity to home gadgets is creating dangerous side effects that figure to get even worse.

By experimenting, computers are figuring out how to do things that no programmer could teach them.

These technologies all have staying power. They will affect the economy and our politics, improve medicine, or influence our culture. Some are unfolding now; others will take a decade or more to develop. But you should know about all of them right now.

Who needs a Tesla when you can build your own automated copilot using free hardware designs and software available online?

Sure, you can soar or swim in VR. Just put on a headset and jump in a pool.

The collapse of the Tokyo company’s nuclear development arm puts a likely end to new U.S. plants.

Traditional movies were the popular art form of the 20th century. Is virtual reality what comes next?

Traditional movies were the popular art form of the 20th century. Is virtual reality what comes next?

The visor-like devices need to be combined with gene therapy to work.

The search giant’s filmmaker on what the new medium does that film cannot.

Artificial intelligence could dramatically improve the economy and aspects of everyday life, but we need to invent ways to make sure everyone benefits.

Evolution-warping technology applied to mice is a step toward “synthetic” species conservation.

Harvard Medical School is testing a new design of a brain implant meant to restore vision to the blind.

Donald Trump’s choice for EPA director would put at risk the nation’s ability to meet its Paris climate commitments.

Scott Pruitt’s confirmation as EPA director would put at risk the nation’s ability to meet its Paris climate commitments.

Software that works on Wall Street is changing how business is done and who profits from it.

Conflict over government access to encrypted data will inevitably reignite under President Trump.

The shipping giant is investing in autonomous trucks, and is interested in delivery robots and an Alexa app.

The shipping giant is investing in autonomous trucks, and is interested in delivery robots and an Alexa app.

A key ingredient in flexible and lightweight devices of the future is taking shape at Corning’s research center in rural New York.

The FDA wants to regulate animals altered using the gene-editing technique CRISPR.

Customer-service reps are getting real-time coaching from software that has learned to detect problems in a conversation.

We’ll likely see new business models and video streaming products from the big ISPs if Trump removes net neutrality rules, and upstart content providers could struggle to compete.

An immersion course in “exponential thinking” at Singularity University lures executives wary of disruption.

Toutiao uses artificial intelligence to curate headline recommendations.

Toutiao uses artificial intelligence to curate headline recommendations.

Nurx provides birth-control prescriptions and delivery, helping reach even women in health-care deserts.

A startup uses algorithms that understand the anatomy of cells to discover new uses for existing drugs.

Playing poker involves dealing with imperfect information, which makes the game very complex, and more like many real-world situations.

Even if you don’t live in Britain, the U.K.’s new “Snooper’s Charter” is worth watching. It could inspire other democratic nations to adopt aggressive surveillance policies.

Machines that are capable of making precise operations inside the human eye will make it possible to perform entirely new procedures.

Millions of people talking with Alexa could help Amazon fight off Google in the home voice assistant market.

A health-care startup is using fancy digs, fitness trackers, and a membership fee to change doctor visits.

Every president since FDR has had a science advisor. Trump has yet to name one or indicate leading candidates.

A startup called Ambrosia will fill your veins with the blood of young people and empty your pockets of $8,000.

Playing video games and surfing Google Street View can teach software a lot about driving.

Self-driving car software can learn a lot without even leaving the garage.

The first of its kind, the device will include a touch screen and 14-line Braille display.

Chips with silicon “neurons” could make satellites, aircraft, and drones smarter.

When Brian Hanley set out to test a gene therapy, he started with himself.

The past eight years saw some wins, and more than a few failures.

Nobel Prize winners lend their faces, credibility, to supplement maker Elysium’s advertising campaign.